The present invention meets the above-identified need by providing a system, a method, and a computer program product that allows a person-to-person transfer of funds through use of wireless communications. The wireless communications take place via one or more mobile communication devices. Neither of the persons involved in the funds transfer is necessarily a traditional merchant, and no issuer-merchant agreement needs to be in place before the funds transfer takes place, as typically would be required before a merchant would be able to accept payment through a card issued by an issuer. Instead, the present invention enables funds to be transferred from a financial transaction account of a payer to a financial transaction account of a payee through wireless communications that occur between one or more mobile devices, such as a mobile telephone or the like.
An advantage of the present invention is that it allows an owner of a first card (sometimes referred to as a cardmember) to transfer funds to an owner of a second card by transferring funds directly from a financial transaction account corresponding to the first card to a financial transaction account corresponding to a second card. The issuer of the first card can be the same as the issuer of the second card, such as in a transfer of funds between two American Express® accounts, or the issuer of the first card can be different from the issuer of the second card. Thus, a cardmember can transfer funds, without the use of cash or checks, to another cardmember who is not a merchant or who is not authorized/equipped to receive funds via a card. More specifically, once an agreement is reached to transfer funds, a mobile device of the payee transmits information (e.g., account identification information, amount to be transferred, caller ID of the payee's mobile-device, etc.) to a mobile device of the payer, which uses the transmitted information in a funds-transfer request. The request is transmitted by the payer's mobile device to a transfer server, which determines whether the transfer is permitted and, if so, arranges for the funds to be transferred. The transfer server then causes a transfer acknowledgment to be sent to the payee's mobile device (or both the payer's and the payee's mobile devices) as a payment confirmation.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, a computer system is provided for enabling a buyer to transfer funds to a seller via a mobile telephone. The system includes a processor a memory storing control logic, and the control logic includes:                first computer-readable program code for causing the processor to receive a payment request transmitted from a mobile telephone of the buyer,                    wherein the payment request is for a transfer of funds from a financial account held by the buyer to a financial account held by the seller,            wherein the payment request is transmitted from a payment application stored in the buyer's mobile telephone, and            wherein the payment request identifies a purchase amount to be transferred, and information identifying the financial account held by the buyer;                        second computer-readable program code for causing the processor to charge the purchase amount to the financial account held by the buyer and to transfer the purchase amount to a financial account held by the seller; and        third computer-readable program code for causing the processor to provide a payment acknowledgment to the buyer's mobile telephone and to the seller.        
According to another embodiment of the present invention, a computer system is provided for enabling a first party to transfer funds to a second party via a mobile telephone. The system includes a processor and a memory storing control logic. The control logic includes:                first computer-readable program code for causing the processor to receive a payment request transmitted from a mobile telephone of the first party,                    wherein the payment request is for a transfer of funds between a financial account held by the first party and a financial account held by the second party,            wherein the payment request is transmitted from a payment application stored in the first party's mobile telephone, and            wherein the payment request identifies a purchase amount to be transferred, information identifying the financial account of the first party, and information identifying the financial account of the second party;                        second computer-readable program code for causing the processor to transfer the purchase amount between to the financial account held by the first party and the financial account held by the second party; and        third computer-readable program code for causing the processor to provide a payment acknowledgment to the first's mobile telephone and to a communication device of the second party.        
According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, a computer system is provided for enabling a first party to transfer funds to a second party via a mobile device. The system includes a processor and a memory storing control logic. The control logic includes:                first computer-readable program code for causing the processor to receive a payment request transmitted from a mobile device of the first party,                    wherein the payment request is for a transfer of funds between a financial account held by the first party and a financial account held by the second party,            wherein the payment request is transmitted from a payment application stored in the first party's mobile device, and            wherein the payment request identifies a purchase amount to be transferred, information identifying the financial account of the first party, and information identifying the financial account of the second party;                        second computer-readable program code for causing the processor to transfer the purchase amount between to the financial account held by the first party and the financial account held by the second party; and        third computer-readable program code for causing the processor to provide a payment acknowledgment to the first's mobile device and to a communication device of the second party.        
According to still another embodiment of the present invention, a computer system is provided for enabling a buyer to transfer funds to a seller via a mobile telephone. The system includes a processor and a memory storing control logic. The control logic includes:                first computer-readable program code for causing the processor to download a payment application to a mobile telephone of the buyer upon a download request transmitted from the buyer's mobile telephone to the computer system,                    wherein the downloaded payment application is personalized for the buyer in accordance with identification information transmitted from the buyer's mobile telephone to the computer system, and            wherein the downloaded payment application is stored in a memory of the buyer's mobile telephone;                        second computer-readable program code for causing the processor to receive a payment request transmitted from the buyer's mobile telephone,                    wherein the payment request is for a transfer of funds from a financial account held by the buyer to a financial account held by the seller, and            wherein the payment request is transmitted in accordance with the payment application and identifies a purchase amount to be transferred, a telephone number for a mobile telephone of the seller, and information identifying the financial account held by the buyer;                        third computer-readable program code for causing the processor to charge the purchase amount to the financial account held by the buyer and to transfer the purchase amount to a financial account held by the seller; and        fourth computer-readable program code for causing the processor to provide a payment acknowledgment to each of the buyer's mobile telephone and the seller's mobile telephone.        
Further features and advantages of the present invention as well as the structure and operation of various embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.